“Center, This is Compassion Seven-One-Golf”

Once pilots complete the first flight, says Roger D'Entremont, "they're hooked." While many join just because they love to fly, "you cannot do this and not be affected by the people you're helping," he adds. Often pilots develop a bond with the patients they transport, calling them afterward to see how their treatments went or to offer encouragement. Some have even visited patients in the hospital. Likewise, some patients like to request a certain pilot whenever they fly.

"I flew in the Air Force," D'Entremont says, "and like all those guys I believed I was a god, that I was never gonna get hurt, that I was gonna live forever. But here the people you're helping are all ages, come from all walks of life, and you just realize how fortunate you are to have your health, to fly, and to have the resources to do it.

"It's such a simple thing," he adds "You're giving someone a ride. But it can mean so much to them."